Local Democracy Reporting Service
George Makin

A secondary school in Sandwell has closed its doors as cases of coronavirus forced staff and pupils to self isolate.

Image source, Google

Wood Green Academy in Wednesbury has told parents it will not reopen until Wednesday, 2 December, saying it could not ensure the safety of children and teachers.

The school has ordered all of its 1,400 pupils home due to the number of positive Covid-19. cases.

It is the second school in the area to be forced to close its doorsafter Perryfields High School, in Oldbury, told parents to keep 1,100 children at home until Monday, 7 December.

Adam Peaty has broken his own world record at the International Swimming League in Budapest.

The 25-year-old from Uttoxeter completed the 100m breastroke in 55.41 on the final day of the finals.

The most recent figures from Public Health England show a fall in the Covid-19 rates in most parts of the West Midlands for the first time in weeks.

New cases in Dudley, Stoke-on-Trent, Sandwell, Newcastle-under-Lyme and East Staffordshire remain very high - all still have rates of above 400 new infections per 100,000 people.

But, the three worst-affected areas all saw falls, and the other two only experienced very slight increases - in the case of East Staffordshire less than one extra case per 100,000 people.

Twenty-five out of 30 local authority areas in the West Midlands saw (mostly small) drops in the weekly rate.

Until recently, the data had shown a continuous rise in most parts of the region since the summer.

However, it's unclear what effect lockdown is having on hospital admissions. On Friday, the boss of England's biggest hospital trust, in Birmingham, said November's admissions were expected to be double of those in April.

Later, Boris Johnson is set to announce the detail of England's return to a three-tier system once the latest lockdown ends on 2 December.

He is expected to tell MPs the increase in new cases is "flattening off".

Plans to redevelop an area of Worcester have been described as "grossly out of scale with the surrounding area" by a group objecting to the plans.

Image source, The Victorian Society

The Lowesmoor Wharf project , externalaims to create a "vibrant new waterside" destination, say developers, and will include the demolition of several buildings including Vesta Tilley House.

A former music hall, it has strong links to Worcester-born Ms Tilley, who was known for being a male impersonator.

The redevelopment plans have prompted a number of objections including from the Victorian Society which is in the process of submitting listing applications "to help ensure their survival".

The group's director, Joe O’Donnell, said: "The sensitive redevelopment of Lowesmoor canal basin could preserve and enhance the conservation area’s character. However, the current proposals are as far away from sensitive as it is possible to get."

Lauren Mae Bloomer, 25, from Birmingham, was found seriously injured in Tamworth.

Coventry Live

Some of the Coventry Live headlines today include:

• Church roof attacked by 'death watch' beetles, external
• Woman taken to hospital after crash in Foleshill, external
• Couple transform their home into a festive wonderland, external

A full hearing will hear from teachers, children and the ambulance service, a coroners says.

The leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council has written to the health secretary appealing for the city not to be put into the highest tier when the current lockdown ends.

The city still has one of the highest rates of infection in the country, but it's hoped it won't face the toughest measures.

Latest figures show the rate of new infections fell from 543.3 per 100,000 people for the week up to 11 November to 490.7 the following week.

A tougher three-tiered system of local restrictions will come into force in England when the lockdown ends on 2 December, Downing Street has said.

Council leader Abi Brown said there was now a "steady reduction" in Stoke-on-Trent's rates over the past week.

"I will be lobbying really hard to make sure Stoke-on-Trent goes back into tier two," she said.

Britain's biggest traditional auction of mistletoe, held every Christmas at Tenbury Wells, has been cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The town sits alongside the River Teme where Shropshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire meet - and experts say it provides some of the best growing conditions for mistletoe.

It's the first time in 160 years that the event hasn't gone ahead.

Auctioneer Nick Champion says there will be a lot of "disappointed customers".

"I am sad, I've been doing it since 1977 so it's a long time, and there's a lot of characters come to the auction and it is missed."

A number of homes were evacuated after a large fire broke out at a disused building in Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent.

Image source, Staffordshire Fire Service

Crews worked through the night to tackle the blaze on Williamson Street.

At its height, more than 30 firefighters were called to the scene.

A number of residents were placed in accommodation by the city council after concerns were raised over the safety of buildings, said the fire service. , external

Sam Hughes
BBC Midlands Today

It's just over a month to Christmas and Birmingham would normally be bustling, playing host to the traditional German Christmas Market.

I was in the city on Sunday morning capturing a very different scene with the city in a national coronavirus lockdown.

Ashley Pace attacked Jagdev Lally in Smethwick over where he had gone to sleep, police say.

Businesses can start bidding for £12bn worth of new contracts on the UK's new high-speed rail line.

HS2 will link the Birmingham with London, with more than 2,000 companies are involved in its construction so far.

Over 350 businesses in the West Midlands have registered for HS2’s four-day virtual event, which will showcase contract opportunities online.

The contracts range in scale and value between £5,000 and £200m.

Express and Star

Some of the Express and Star headlines today include:

• Trial at Wolverhampton care home could open up routine visits at last, external
• Businesses invited to tender for £12b worth of HS2 contracts, external
• Animal sanctuary launches fundraising appeal ahead of winter, external

Rebecca Woods
BBC News

In December 2001, a perilous operation took place in Birmingham to separate three-month-old conjoined twins Sanchia and Eman Mowatt.

They started life as the focus of the world's media, but what are the 19-year-old sisters who defied medical odds doing today?

You can read more here.

Image source, The Mowatt Family

Rich Davis
BBC Weather presenter

It will be a dry day with some bright spells and highs of 10C (50F).

Vanessa Pearce
BBC News

Welcome to our live service for Monday.

We'll be bringing you all the news, sport, travel and weather for the West Midlands.

We love to hear from you so share your news, thoughts and photos of the area with us via email, Twitter, external and Facebook., external